TMA Unveils The "Texas Medicare Manifesto"

Main Category: Medicare / Medicaid / SCHIP
Article Date: 04 Feb 2008 - 14:00 PDT

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Texas Medical Association (TMA) president William W. Hinchey, MD, unveiled the association's hard-line strategy to ensure Medicare patients get the health care they need and deserve.

Dr. Hinchey called on all physicians and their patients to support and participate in the association's "Texas Medicare Manifesto." The manifesto is TMA's public declaration of its principles, policies, and intentions to force Congress to fix the imploding Medicare program.

"We must hold the government accountable to the promises it made to help us care for our elderly patients and Texans with disabilities," said Dr. Hinchey. "We are demanding that our U.S. Representatives and Senators take the following actions:

- "Fix the Flawed Payment Formula: The current funding scheme ensures that hospitals, nursing homes, pharmaceutical companies, and many other Medicare providers receive an automatic cost-of-living increase. Meanwhile, doctors - the frontline people who take care of Medicare patients - have to fight each year to avoid dramatic pay cuts. We need a rational Medicare physician payment system that automatically keeps up with the cost of running a practice, and is backed by a stable funding source.

- "Tear Down the Silos: Hospitals, nursing homes, Medicare HMOs, or any other Medicare provider should NOT receive automatic fee updates until the physician payment system is addressed for the benefit of our Medicare patients. This may involve 'breaking down the silos' between Medicare Parts A, B, and D.

- "Put Patients Before Insurance Companies: Medicare Advantage plans should NOT come ahead of patient care. Medicare Advantage insurance plans and Medicare HMOs are receiving double-digit, multimillion-dollar bonuses for simply brokering existing medical services. These critical health care dollars should be used for health care, not health insurance profits.

"I want all members of the Texas Delegation in Congress to clearly understand that 'no action' is no longer acceptable. Congress must take immediate action today. There simply is no time to waste," added Dr. Hinchey.

He asked physicians and their patients to write letters, and call and visit their lawmakers. He also invited them to participate in a march on Capitol Hill, April 1 in Washington, DC. The American Medical Association and physicians from across the country are demanding that Congress take the actions addressed in the Texas Medicare Manifesto.

For more information on "Texas Medicare Manifesto," please click here.

TMA is the largest state medical society in the nation, representing more than 43,000 physician and medical student members. It is located in Austin and has 120 component county medical societies around the state. TMA's key objective since 1853 is to improve the health of all Texans.

http://www.texmed.org